


Sweet Atonement

by VolsungartheMighty



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Body Swap Au!, IED, M/M, Panic Attacks, Thiam, Thiam Half Birthday, anger issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-17
Updated: 2018-06-17
Packaged: 2019-05-24 07:52:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14950628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VolsungartheMighty/pseuds/VolsungartheMighty
Summary: Liam and Theo wake up one morning, in each other's bodies. Their day... doesn't exactly go the way they expected it to.





	Sweet Atonement

**Author's Note:**

  * For [parttimehuman](https://archiveofourown.org/users/parttimehuman/gifts).



> So for those of you on the discord, I didnt end up using the spiral, but i will eventually write another body swap where i will incorporate most of what we talked about into it. For now, this is simply the prompt i was originally given.

When Theo woke up. His first thought was that something was wrong.

He was lying in a bed, surrounded by pillows and blankets to protect against the cold and not in the back of his car.

The room looked… familiar, somehow, but he couldn’t tell how he knew the room. He groaned, a million thoughts running through his mind, before landing on one that seemed to fit. He must have gotten drunk on Lydia’s wolfsbane laced alcohol the night before and had a one night stand.

It would explain why he hadn’t woken up from nightmares during the night, and why he was now in a stranger’s bed. That was when he realised the second problem.

The room smelt only of him.

He looked around again, finding nothing out of the ordinary in this room that was familiar, growing more and more familiar with every second. Memories filtered into his mind, of living in this very room, growing up in it. But he shook his head of the memories, since that was wrong. He hadn’t had his own room since he was nine. He’d lived in sewers and dilapidated shacks for years, but never had his own room.

He groaned all the same, throwing the blankets to the side and flinging his legs over the side of the bed. The bed must have been a little higher off the ground than he would have thought, since his feet only just touched the ground. He shrugged, figuring he shouldn’t complain about how high off the floor the bed was, since he didn’t even have one of his own, before he padded into the bathroom connected to the bedroom.

He almost screamed when he looked in the mirror, however, when he found Liam’s face looking back at him in the reflection.

He looked down, running his hands up and down the bare torso, making sure that what he was seeing wasn’t real. But the feeling of soft hair under his fingers told him otherwise. Still, pinched himself, hoping to wake himself up from whatever nightmare this was, but that didn’t work either.

Once he had gathered his wits about him, he looked closer, curious to see what had happened. It seemed like there was nothing wrong with him outside of him being in the wrong body, everything about Liam’s face looked to be just the way it usually was.

The house was quiet, so he padded his way down to the kitchen, now aware of why the house was familiar, finding a note on the fridge.

_Gone to work early, your lunch is in the fridge. Have a good day at school_

_-Love Mum_

He was almost… embarrassed by the note, but also… content, happy, and that was odd. Theo didn’t know how or why, but he knew, somehow, that that wasn’t something he was feeling. It was something Liam felt, every time he got a note from his mother in the morning.

He fixed himself some breakfast, before he went back up stairs to get ready for school.

And boy, did it took a lot of effort for Theo to restrain himself when he got changed to not drop his boxers and see what Liam was packing, but he wanted to maintain _some sort_ of privacy with the other boy. It didn’t help that the boxers seemed to be particularly tight ones that showed off _everything_ , but still. He of course knew he would eventually see what Liam had when he would, eventually, need to relieve himself, but he would find out eventually.

He made his way out of the house, and down the road to school, wondering how the fuck this had happened.

***

Liam woke with a gut-wrenching scream, his limbs flailing violently as the scream was ripped from his lungs.

A loud crack rent the air as his hand connected with something hard and solid and the bones of his wrist broke.

He hissed in pain, finally becoming aware of his surroundings. He quickly noticed that it was dark outside, much earlier than he was used to getting up, and he was laying in the back of a car, a thin blanket covering his torso. It wasn’t much, as the cold still seeped through, making him shiver despite his best efforts.

The wrist took longer to heal than usual, and that was Liam’s first indication that something was wrong. This wasn’t the first time he’d woken up in the back of a car at night, probably hungover because of Lydia’s wolfsbane alcohol, and he wouldn’t have been surprised if that were the case. But his metabolism would have burnt off all of the wolfsbane by now, and his healing shouldn’t be affected any more.

He sat up quickly, letting out a loud _“fuck”_ when his head collided with the roof of the car, and that was his second indication that something was wrong. He was too short to hit the roof of a car with his head.

He let out a groan, rubbing the sore spot on his head as he willed the pain away, opening the door to the car and clambering out of it. When he turned around, he found that he had stepped out of Theo’s blue Toyota and not his own.

“The fuck? Why am I in Theo’s car?” Liam almost yelled out, before clapping a hand over his mouth.

That wasn’t his voice. It was Theo’s.

He scrambled to the side mirror, almost wrenching it off of the truck in his haste to look at his reflection. What he found was Theo’s face reflected back at him, the dull gold of his chimera reflected in the mirror framed by his dark hair.

But Liam didn’t have time to contemplate what had happened when he was suddenly hit with a wave of crushing guilt and memories.

He stumbled away from the mirror, falling to the ground and sitting back against one of the wheel’s, the feeling of a crushing weight against his chest almost overwhelming. But he knew what the onset of a panic attack looked like, and forced his, no, Theo’s lungs to draw in great, heaving lungful’s of air. But the urge to cry was too much, and he just breaks down sobbing, leaning against the side of the car.

That’s how the deputy finds him and hour later, still a sobbing wreck. The deputy seems to have no care for what state he is in, only that he has to _“move his truck or have it impounded”_.

He did as the deputy asked, still sobbing and not caring to hide it, turning the ignition on in the car and driving a couple blocks away, far enough that he could stop and contemplate what the fuck just happened.

“Is this what it feels like Theo?” Liam breathed out, leaning his forehead against the steering wheel in an effort to catch his breath. It was odd, hearing Theo’s voice as he spoke, but he pushed the annoyance to the side, instead contemplating the bubble of guilt that still roiled away in his chest. Or, Theo’s chest. “How do you deal with this?”

But there was no answer. Liam didn’t think there would be one.

***

Theo was fucking _terrified_ and he didn’t know how Liam was able to stand this.

He’d only been at school for a couple of hours, and so far, he was seething in his seat. He and Liam had briefly met before class, and the quick, almost shouted conversation had consisted of them agreeing to go about their day as if they were the other. Theo had snatched a hastily written copy of Liam’s timetable out of his hands, shoving his own into Liam’s, before marching down the hall.

He was glad it was only a Friday, thankful that Liam wouldn’t fuck up his marks for the much longer.

But the conversation had been long enough for him to be late to class, with the teacher, Mister Rider, Theo was sure his name was, giving him detention after school. The bastard had then had the _audacity_ to call on Theo every time he needed a question asked, and for once, Theo was unable to answer the questions. He had never really cared for history in the past, which was why he never took it, and he knew Liam would be pissed that he didn’t even get a single question right. He was thankful he didn’t have a test.

All the while, with every question and disappointed look, every barely restrained laugh at his flustered face, a fire roared to life in his chest. And everything stated to stoke the flames.

By the time he walked into Spanish, just after history, the fire was roaring. He wanted to snap at everyone, the boy next to him who kept clicking his pen too often, the girl three seats back who kept giggling at her phone every five minutes, another one who kept tapping her nails on the table. It was all getting to him, and he knew he was going to snap sooner rather than later.

And it all terrified Theo. Terrified him so much that he was going to snap that he paid no attention to the teacher, ignored her every time she tried to ask him a question. The moment the bell rang brought him some relief, as he bolted out the door, bag over his shoulder as he made his way to the locker room, wincing at the pain in his hand as his claws broke the skin of his palm.

And then someone slammed into his shoulder, sending him sprawling to the ground. Students were laughing around him as he fell, his bag bursting and sending books, pens and papers flying in every direction. The fire had suddenly sparked into a raging inferno, ready to break free at any moment. He knew that the next person to speak to him would make him snap, and he wasn’t ready for this.

He wasn’t ready for all of this anger.

And then he heard a voice, low enough that only he could hear, but it was there, calling his name.

When he looked up, he found Liam there, in Theo’s own body, standing over him.

Theo wouldn’t remember why afterwards, but that was when his control snapped, and he lunged towards Liam, fists flying.

***

Liam was not having the best of days himself, but he could certainly say for sure that he was having a better day than Theo was.

His morning could have been better, but the memories of his nightmares, of Tara ripping her heart out of his chest, were too painful and too vivid for him to go back to sleep. So, he found himself sitting in a Mcdonalds, nursing a coffee, or four, and eating hash browns and sausage mcmuffins until it was time for him to leave for school.

He’d misjudged the time it would take to get to school, but he wasn’t… as annoyed as he would have been. The annoyance was there, but the usual fire of anger just… wasn’t. He didn’t know what to think about that, about how he was reacting to something as simple as being late as any normal person.

He’d been late to class catching up with Theo, and boy, had that been an out of body experience, watching his body move and talk without him there. It reminded him of the movie Freaky Friday, but Theo seemed to still be used to his former height, much like Liam was still getting used to the extra height.

But though he was late to class, AP biology, who knew, Liam had simply flashed a smile at the teacher and she had given him a free pass, with a warning that he would get a detention the next time he was late to class. He was thankful that the teacher hadn’t called on him for everything, simply passing him by. Liam realised why when she passed out the tests the class had done a few days before, and he saw that Theo had gotten an almost perfect mark. He didn’t need to be called on for questions, it seemed.

The next class he was on time to, and this time it was English Literature. He chuckled a little to himself, earning himself a few strange looks from the students around them. They mustn’t be used to Theo expressing more than just casual annoyance to everyone.

This was actually one of the few subjects Liam and Theo had that were the same, only they ran at different times. Liam had, funnily enough, already sat through the lecture on the novel they were reading and managed to impress their teacher with his knowledge of the book.

What could he say, he’d actually enjoyed this book.

The bell rang, signalling the end to the class, and then Liam and the other students were filing out of the class, heading out of the building for a break between classes. Up ahead Liam saw Theo… well, Theo, as himself, but Theo all the same. Theo was walking in his direction, a look that was equal parts rage and terror covering his face, when a group of boys walked past, one of them, quite obviously on purpose, slammed his shoulder into Theo’s, sending him sprawling to the ground.

The students around them started laughing, but Liam ignored them, surging forward, pushing through the crowd of students and coming to a stop when he reached the edge of the crowd that was now surrounding Theo.

“Theo” Liam breathed out, low enough that only Theo would be able to hear.

His head snapped upwards, and Liam could tell that had been the wrong thing to do, as his eyes flickered briefly from bright blue to golden and back again. It was almost imperceptible, you had to have been looking for it to notice it, but it was there. And Liam knew _exactly_ what that meant.

Theo was fighting a losing battle against Liam’s IED, much like Liam had had the panic attack that morning.

Theo was on his feet in a moment, a low growl spilling from his lips, before he was charging forward, towards Liam. But Liam was quicker, his body already tensed for a fight, and he ducked the fist that had been aimed at his head, slamming his shoulder into Theo’s exposed stomach and hauling him over it, practically running from the crowd of onlookers.

He jogged slightly through the halls of the school, Theo growling and snarling, punching his back as hard as he could, but Liam took it all with a grimace. He knew that his IED got the better of him some days, but it was scary, seeing it from an outsiders perspective.

They were at the locker room in minutes, and Liam was thankful that it was empty as he made his way over to the communal showers, throwing Theo against the wall and pining him there with one arm braced over his chest, the hand of the other arm searching for the tap, twisting it once he had a hold of it.

Freezing water cascaded down over the two of them, quickly soaking through their clothes and cooling their skin. Theo eyes now glowed golden, fangs having descended at some point, his features a cross between wolf and man. But the cold water was doing something, Liam could tell. Much like Scott and Stiles had known, somehow, that this would work, Liam knew from experience that this would help.

A few moments later Theo’s eyes faded back to their usual blue, his fangs disappearing and his features returning to normal, his chest panting and heaving, as if each breath was took more effort than usual to take. Liam slowly removed his arm from Theo’s chest, letting the now shorter boy slide down the tile wall until he sat on the floor in a growing puddle of cold water.

“How… how do you do it?” Theo gasped out, his hands going up to cover his face, his head hanging in shame. “Is this why you’re an asshole at times? Because the IED is in control?”

Liam was silent for a moment, but nodded his head all the same, his lips pursed in a neutral look. “Yeah, it is” he said quietly. He reached up and turning the tap off, letting the last of the freezing water fall to the ground before he spoke again. “Most days I have good days, where it doesn’t build up as fast as you just did. Most days I can take my frustration out during Lacrosse or while at the gym, but other times… Stiles’ analogy of me being a ticking time bomb is probably the most accurate.”

There was a pause as Theo looked up, looking Liam in the eye. “If I’m having to put up with your IED, I guess you’ve seen everything I go through.”

It wasn’t a question, but Liam nodded.

“Yeah, I woke up in your car, screaming from a nightmare. Broke my wrist while I was at it.” Theo chuckled, and Liam joined in. “How do you do it? How do you put up with the nightmares and the guilt? Is that why you’re an asshole? Because you think you don’t deserve to be back?”

Theo muttered something that sounded like _“There’s no point in hiding it, I suppose”_ , before he spoke a little louder. “In a way… but there’s more to it. If you can feel the guilt, you should be able to feel everything else, right? Look at me and tell me what you fell.”

Liam did as he asked, letting his eyes wander over his own body. He didn’t know what he was meant to be feeling, what Theo was meant to be getting at, and then it hit him. Like a flower blooming inside of him, a warmth suffused his body, filling his chest and warming him from the inside out. But there was something else, something darker in the middle. Liam didn’t know what the warmth was meant to mean to Theo, but he knew what the darkness meant. Self-doubt, loathing, guilt, betrayal anger. All wrapped up in this neat little bundle, in the centre of this unexplainable warmth.

He reached a hand up, rubbing at his chest through the damp shirt, before he asked, “What are you trying to say?”

Theo huffed in annoyance, but Liam thought it sounded cute coming from his own mouth. And that was an odd thought, why did he suddenly think his own body was cute?

And then it hit him, what the warmth meant.

“You attracted to me, aren’t you?” Liam breathed out. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

Theo nodded, but his mouth was set in a thin line, as if he was unsure of what he was about to say. But he spoke, and the words broke Liam. “Because I don’t deserve you, Liam. I’ve done too much bad to other people, too much bad to _you_ , to deserve anyone’s love, let alone yours.”

Liam sighed, not knowing what to think. But what he said was, “Look at me, and tell me what you feel.”

He waited a moment, watching Theo, watching as his eyes widened, and Liam knew Theo now knew the feeling was mutual.

“There was more to why I brought you back, Theo” Liam whispered, eyes locked with Theo’s. “We brought you back because we thought you could help us with the riders, yes. But… I didn’t like that you were sent to hell. I couldn’t live with myself, knowing that you were suffering in hell. The only reason I hadn’t done it sooner was because ‘I needed a better reason’ apparently.”

“You like me? And you brought me back because… you couldn’t stand the thought of me suffering in hell” Theo breathed out, a look of shock on his face. “But why? I tried to get you to kill Scott and would have killed you if you had. Why would you want to save me?”

“Because I liked you even back when you were evil” Liam said. “Something about you drew me in and I couldn’t shake it, even after you turned on us.”

“So, what do we do now?” Theo asked after a few moments had passed. “How are we supposed to go back to normal?”

“I… I’m not sure” Liam said, closing his eyes in thought.

And then he felt something pushing against his chest, something hard and almost painful, before, with another shove, he simply fell.

When he opened his eyes again, he was looking at Theo. But it was Theo’s body, not his own, that he was looking at. He looked down, running his hands up and down his torso, wondering what the _fuck_ had just happened.

He looked back up at Theo, who looked back at him with a look of equal shock, his hands still roaming his body, pinching his arm to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. But his eyes swam with attraction as he kept them locked on Liam’s, a soft smile on his face.

“I suppose it won’t be too weird if I were to do this now, would it?” Theo asked as he leaned forward, pressing his lips to Liam’s. Liam was quick to kiss him back, pouring his affection for the chimera into the kiss as much as he could before they were pulling back.

“That was good” Liam said, breath coming out in pants. Theo chuckled, leaning his head against Liam’s shoulder, and Liam craned his neck to the side, chuckling as Theo nuzzled into his side, following his scent. “Are we good? Is this going to be a thing now, or are we going to go back to how we were before?” Liam asked, voice low and quiet, almost afraid.

Theo pulled back, the same, soft smile on his face still there. “If you want this to be a thing, it can be a thing” was all he said, before he was leaning back into Liam’s neck, chasing the sweet smell of Liam.

“I hope you know, I’m not letting you live in your truck anymore” Liam said, placing a soft kiss to the side of Theo’s head. “Your coming to live with me, okay?”

Theo nodded a little, and if he was crying at the thought of being with Liam, and of having a place to go home to, no one had to know.


End file.
